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Issue With Gillette Slim

I was just loading a fresh blade in my razor for the morning shave and I noticed something that I'm certain is a problem. It looks like the safety bar may be bent or maybe there is something wrong under the doors? On one side, the blade runs the same distance from the safety bar along its entire length, but on the other side of the razor the blade touches the safety bar on one end and not on the other end. The end that the blade does not touch looks to have the same spacing as the side that the blade does not touch the safety bar at all. I checked settings 1-5 and the problem persisted. I didn't notice it before when I first started using the razor, but it explains the irritation and nicks I am constantly getting (at least partially).

So, the big question, can this be repaired? If so, is the risk of causing more damage greater than the possibility of a successful repair? It's my grandfather's old razor so I would really like to preserve it, and use it if possible.

Thanks in advance for your time and assistance.
 
I am no expert in these matters, but I´m afraid that i doubt that anything can be done. The precision in a razor is down to parts of a millimeter, so even if you try to bend it back it´s probably very unlikely that you´ll get it correct. I have a couple of vintage razors that looks perfect, but shaves horribly. It wasn´t until I studied them extremely close, and had working reference razors, that I saw that they where skewed.
Even so I recommend that you keep your grandfathers razor as a personal memory (I wish I had my grandfathers razor), and besides I might be wrong (it has happend before).
 
I was just loading a fresh blade in my razor for the morning shave and I noticed something that I'm certain is a problem. It looks like the safety bar may be bent or maybe there is something wrong under the doors? On one side, the blade runs the same distance from the safety bar along its entire length, but on the other side of the razor the blade touches the safety bar on one end and not on the other end. The end that the blade does not touch looks to have the same spacing as the side that the blade does not touch the safety bar at all. I checked settings 1-5 and the problem persisted. I didn't notice it before when I first started using the razor, but it explains the irritation and nicks I am constantly getting (at least partially).

So, the big question, can this be repaired? If so, is the risk of causing more damage greater than the possibility of a successful repair? It's my grandfather's old razor so I would really like to preserve it, and use it if possible.

Thanks in advance for your time and assistance.

Let's see some pics.....it may be saved sounds like.
 
Blade gap variances can easily be adjusted using a butter knife. There are 4 butter knife interfaces built in. These are used to adjust each quadrant. To adjust the blade bar down come in from top with the doors closed. You will use the bottom plate for leverage. Gently insert knife and gently pry downward. Check gaps w feeler gauges from auto parts store. General adjustable gaps can be found on the wiki page for guidance. You may need to adjust all 4 quadrants either up or down. Just be gentle and methodical and do small adjustments. To adjust bar upwards come in from the bottom w the silo doors open using the same method. Here are some pics below to give you an idea. Let me know if you need any further info. I have used this method on several razors and it works perfectly. Just make sure you insert the knife slowly and get your leverage set before prying to reduce scratch risks. This method also can be used to remedy sticky doors or doors that open differently from each other. Often the bars are bent downward to far and the door tab hits early or gets stuck temporarily. Most gap and door issues stem from slightly tweaked safety bars.
 

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Good luck with the adjustment. I am sure you can do it. The butter knife is a great idea and the photos are very helpful in understanding that method.
 
Blade gap variances can easily be adjusted using a butter knife. There are 4 butter knife interfaces built in. These are used to adjust each quadrant. To adjust the blade bar down come in from top with the doors closed. You will use the bottom plate for leverage. Gently insert knife and gently pry downward. Check gaps w feeler gauges from auto parts store. General adjustable gaps can be found on the wiki page for guidance. You may need to adjust all 4 quadrants either up or down. Just be gentle and methodical and do small adjustments. To adjust bar upwards come in from the bottom w the silo doors open using the same method. Here are some pics below to give you an idea. Let me know if you need any further info. I have used this method on several razors and it works perfectly. Just make sure you insert the knife slowly and get your leverage set before prying to reduce scratch risks. This method also can be used to remedy sticky doors or doors that open differently from each other. Often the bars are bent downward to far and the door tab hits early or gets stuck temporarily. Most gap and door issues stem from slightly tweaked safety bars.


Simple enough. Thank you for responding and posting picture. When I try to use a butter knife to bent the safety bar back down, the bar does not bend, instead the entire piece that the safety bar is a part of moves downward and creates a gap. Is this a confounding problem, or normal movement? I'll try to post some pictures.
 
That's very normal. The base plate will move. Just let it move as you begin to apply pressure. Once it stops you can then continue your pressure to start adjusting the safety bar. You can also use your thumb to assist in holding the baseplate up when your tweaking the bar downward.
 
Here are some pictures to help explain since I do not know then nomenclature. The first picture is how the razor normally looks when closed and set on 1. There is no blade inserted. In the second picture I added a line indicating the part that moves up and down. The third picture has a box around the gap that is created. I couldn't take a picture of this gap with the doors closed because there is a little spring tension that made it difficult. Opening the doors removes the spring tension but the gap remains the same and the same part moves up and down.

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Blade gap variances can easily be adjusted using a butter knife. There are 4 butter knife interfaces built in. These are used to adjust each quadrant. To adjust the blade bar down come in from top with the doors closed. You will use the bottom plate for leverage. Gently insert knife and gently pry downward. Check gaps w feeler gauges from auto parts store. General adjustable gaps can be found on the wiki page for guidance. You may need to adjust all 4 quadrants either up or down. Just be gentle and methodical and do small adjustments. To adjust bar upwards come in from the bottom w the silo doors open using the same method. Here are some pics below to give you an idea. Let me know if you need any further info. I have used this method on several razors and it works perfectly. Just make sure you insert the knife slowly and get your leverage set before prying to reduce scratch risks. This method also can be used to remedy sticky doors or doors that open differently from each other. Often the bars are bent downward to far and the door tab hits early or gets stuck temporarily. Most gap and door issues stem from slightly tweaked safety bars.

thank you so much! I was able to adjust my black beauty blade gap issue thanks to your post ! Much appreciated. Bless you!
 
As the options presented are fix w butter knife or never use razor, the butter knife would seem to be the way to go
 
My advice is;
Don't do that.

+1

Whatever you do, DON’T send anything to Razor Emporium. Don’t allow yourself to be fooled by their glib and personable You Tube videos. Avoid them at all costs, unless you’re willing to run the risk of significant trouble and/or loss.
 
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